It is known in the medical community that significant bacterial colonization occurs on surfaces of non-disposable sphygmomanometer cuffs, more commonly referred to as blood-pressure cuffs, as well as on reused disposable cuffs. Contamination of blood-pressure cuffs can be particularly problematic in hospital intensive care units and emergency rooms where the cuffs are commonly exposed to blood and other bodily fluids, thus making the cuffs a possible source of infection if reused. With the increasing recognition that contamination of blood-pressure cuff can be a source of infection, it has been recommended that, where possible, a sterilized cuff, or an unused disposable cuff, be dedicated to each patient upon arrival at a hospital and that the cuff follow the patient around in the hospital. However, dedicating a cuff to each patient requires a large number of cuffs, thereby making the practice expensive. Moreover, it is procedurally difficult to insure that the cuff follows the patient's movements in the hospital. Disposable cuffs are available as a possible solution, but disposable cuffs also lead to substantial additional expense. Consequently persons working in the medical field still commonly reuse blood-pressure cuffs on different patients without cleaning the cuffs between patients.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,228,448 ("the '448 Patent) a protective cover for a blood-pressure cuff is disclosed which reduces the possibility of contaminates being transmitted between a blood-pressure cuff and a patient. The protective cover of this patent includes a protective sheet defining an elongated bottom band joined by an intermediate portion to an elongated top band. The bottom band is wrapped about the appendage of a patient, and the blood-pressure cuff is wrapped about the bottom band. The top band is then pivoted relative to the bottom band at the intermediate portion over the blood-pressure cuff and wrapped thereabout. Whereas the cover of the '448 Patent represented a considerable advancement of the art, with this protective cover contaminates can still be communicated between the patient and cuff at the opposite edges of the cover. For example, where a patient is loosing blood or other bodily fluids the cover does not prevent such fluids from being communicated between the top and bottom bands at the edges of such bands. The cover of the '448 patent also restricts the positioning of the pneumatic tubes which communicate with the gauge and pump of the sphygmomanometer, and due to the manner in which such tubes exit the cover, movement of the patient can result in the cover being pulled out of position. Further, if the top band of the cover is tightly secured over the cuff so as to most advantageously prevent contamination of the cuff it can interfere with the proper inflation of the cuff and cause inaccurate blood pressure readings.
Other covering devices are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,911,151; 4,905,715; 4,572,173; 4,406,281; 4,378,009; 3,473,525; 2,244,871 and 15,450.
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved blood-pressure cuff cover which prohibits contaminates from being communicated between a patient and a blood-pressure cuff, and which can be universally used with blood-pressure cuffs of various sizes.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved blood-pressure cuff cover which protects health care workers from coming into contact with contaminated blood-pressure cuffs.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a blood-pressure cuff cover which does not restrict the positioning of the pneumatic tubes which communicate with the gauge and pump of the sphygmomanometer, and which will remain in the desired protective position notwithstanding movement of the patient.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a blood-pressure cuff cover which is easy to use and inexpensive to manufacture.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a blood-pressure cuff cover which does not affect the accuracy of a sphygmomanometer.